Arrangement for and method of selectably changing the temperature of a product

ABSTRACT

Radial pressure exerted against a deflectable sidewall of an outer container initiates a chemical reaction in which the temperature of a product in an inner cup is changed.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present invention generally relates to an arrangement that adds orremoves heat from a product, such as a food, beverage, medicine, or likeproduct and, more particularly, to promoting user acceptance of thearrangement by enhancing its operation.

2. Description of the Related Art

Self-heating or self-cooling arrangements are known in which a product,typically a beverage, is heated or cooled by employing two chemicalreactants which are stable when separated, but which produce anexothermic or an endothermic reaction when mixed. U.S. Pat. No.4,793,323 shows one example of a single-use, self-heating container forliquids or solids, in which a breakable membrane keeps the reactantsapart, and a breakable member is actuated by a user to break themembrane and allow the reactants to mix to form the chemical reactionthat changes the temperature of the product.

As advantageous as the known self-heating containers are, experience hasshown that the actuation by the user is difficult for at least someusers to perform. More specifically, the user is expected to axiallydepress an actuator button provided on the bottom of the container. Evenif the user is prompted as to the location of the actuator button, theuser is required to invert the container, and then exert a significantamount of physical force to depress the button along the axis of thecontainer for the axial distance required to break the membrane andinitiate the self-heating action. Some users, particularly the elderlyand children, do not have the strength to activate the self-heatingaction.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION OBJECTS OF THE INVENTION

Accordingly, it is a general object of this invention to promote useracceptance, and to enhance the operation, of arrangements that add orremove heat from a product.

More particularly, it is an object of the present invention to reducethe amount of physical force required to activate thetemperature-changing action.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a reliablearrangement for, and method of, selectably changing the temperature of aproduct.

FEATURES OF THE INVENTION

In keeping with the above objects and others which will become apparenthereinafter, one feature of the present invention resides, brieflystated, in an arrangement for, and a method of, changing a temperatureof a product, typically a food or a beverage, comprising an outercontainer, preferably made of a thermally insulating material, having aside wall bounding an interior and spaced radially from an axis, and aninner cup, preferably made of a thermally conductive material, fixedlymounted within the interior of the container and having a chamber forcontaining the product. Preferably, the cup and the container havejuxtaposed flanges fused together by spin-welding.

A breakable membrane, for example a circular, thin foil, is fixedlymounted within, and subdivides, the interior of the container into apair of compartments. The container is formed with an internal annularshoulder, and a circular periphery of the membrane is adhered to theshoulder. A pair of reactants is respectively contained in thecompartments, and the reactants are kept apart by the membrane prior touse. For example, the reactants may be water and anhydrous calcium oxideor calcium chloride which, when mixed, produce an exothermic chemicalreaction.

A breaking member is mounted within the interior of the container in ajuxtaposed relationship with the membrane. The breaking member is atleast partially supported by the internal shoulder of the container. Inaccordance with this invention, a radial pressure is exerted by the useron the side wall of the container, and this radial pressure causes thebreaking member to break the membrane and allow the reactants to mix andproduce the chemical reaction that changes the temperature of theproduct in the cup.

In contrast to the known art, the temperature changing action is notinitiated by inverting the container to expose an actuator button on thebottom of the container. Nor is the temperature change actuated byaxially depressing a button with a significant amount of force. Instead,the upright container is radially constricted by squeezing the side walladjacent the shoulder between opposed fingers. The user need only holdthe container in one's palm and close his or her fingers around the sidewall in the action of making a fist. This fist-making movement is mucheasier for the user to perform as compared to the depression of abutton.

The novel features which are considered as characteristic of theinvention are set forth in particular in the appended claims. Theinvention itself, however, both as to its construction and its method ofoperation, together with additional objects and advantages thereof, willbe best understood from the following description of specificembodiments when read in connection with the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is an exploded view of an arrangement in accordance with thisinvention;

FIG. 2 is an enlarged sectional view of the arrangement of FIG. 1 afterassembly;

FIG. 3 is a view analogous to FIG. 2, after exertion of radial pressureon a side wall of an outer container;

FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken on line 4-4 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a sectional view taken on line 5-5 of FIG. 2;

FIG. 6 is a bottom plan view of a breaking member for use in thearrangement of FIG. 1;

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the breaking member of FIG. 6;

FIG. 8 is a top plan view of a partially removed seal on a product cupfor use in the arrangement of FIG. 1; and

FIG. 9 is a top plan view of a sip lid for use in the arrangement ofFIG. 1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

As best shown in FIGS. 1-2, an arrangement in accordance with thisinvention includes an outer container 10 having a side wall 12 boundingan interior, an inner cup 14 fixedly mounted within the interior of thecontainer 10, a breakable membrane 16 fixedly mounted within theinterior of the container 10 and subdividing the interior into a pair ofcompartments 18, 20, a pair of reactants 22, 24 respectively containedin the compartments 18, 20 and kept apart by the membrane 16 prior touse, and a breaking member 26 mounted within the container 10,preferably above the membrane 16, and operative for breaking themembrane 16, as described below, to allow the reactants 22, 24 to mixand form a chemical reaction that changes the temperature of a productcontained in the cup 14. A seal 28 seals the product within the cup 14.An apertured sip lid 30 is optionally mounted over the seal 28 and overthe container 10.

The container 10 is symmetrical about an upright axis 32, and the sidewall 12 circumferentially surrounds the axis 32. The side wall 12 ispreferably frusto-conical or cylindrical. The container 10 is formedwith an interior annular shoulder 34 on which a circular periphery ofthe membrane 26 is adhesively secured. A circular periphery of thebreaking member 26 also rests on the shoulder 34. The compartment 18above the membrane 16 is filled with one of the reactants 22, forexample, water, and the compartment 20 below the membrane 16 is filledwith the other of the reactants 24, for example, anhydrous calcium oxideor calcium chloride. Other reactants are contemplated by this invention,and the positions of the reactants could be reversed, that is, the watercould be in the lower compartment, while the anhydrous calcium oxide orcalcium chloride could be in the upper compartment. The container 10 ispreferably constituted of a thermally insulating material, for example,a thermoformed foamed polypropylene, and the side wall 12 is deformableradially inwardly, as described in detail below.

The inner cup 14 contains the product and can consist of a thermoformedplastic or is preferably constituted of a thermally conductive material,for example, a polyethylene coating over an aluminum core formed by adeep draw stamping process. The product can be virtually anything, butis preferably a beverage, such as coffee or tea, or a soup, or afoodstuff. The seal 28 seals the product within the cup. The seal 28, asbest shown in FIGS. 4 and 8, includes an annular rim 36 mechanicallycrimped over a radial annular flange 38 of the cup 14, and a diaphragm40 adhesively mounted on the rim 36 and peelably removable from the rim36 by pulling on a pull tab 42. The rim, diaphragm and pull tab arepreferably constituted of aluminum which is stamped and die cut intotheir illustrated shapes. The seal 28 hermetically seals the productbefore and during the temperature change. Once the temperature changehas been achieved, the pull tab is pulled to at least partially removethe diaphragm and gain access to the product.

The membrane 16 is a thin, tearable foil die cut into a circular shapeand preferably constituted of aluminum. An adhesive at its peripheryadheres the membrane to the shoulder 34 and is preferably thermallyactivated.

The breaking member 26, as best seen in FIGS. 6-7, is an injected moldedpolypropylene plastic operative to pierce and tear the membrane 16. Thebreaking member 26 has a plurality of radial arms 44, 46, 48, 50 havinginner ends connected by respective living hinges 52 to a central,pointed barb 54 that lies along the axis 32 and faces the membrane 16. Aplurality of abutments 56, 58, 60, 62 is connected by respective livinghinges 64 at outer ends of the arms. The abutments are curved to conformto the curvature of the side wall 12 against which the abutments contact(see FIG. 5).

As shown in FIG. 2, the membrane 16 is intact, and the breaking member26 rests on the membrane 16 and the shoulder 34. If a radial pressure isexerted on the side wall 12 adjacent the shoulder 34, as schematicallyillustrated by the opposing fingers 66 of a user's hand moving in thedirections of arrows 68, then the side wall 12 deforms inwardly, theabutments are pushed inwardly, the living hinges 64 bend, the arms arepushed downwardly, the living hinges 52 bend, and the pointed barb 54moves downwardly and pierces the membrane 16. The reactant 22 in theupper compartment 18 flows downwardly through the ruptured membrane andchemically reacts with the reactant 24 in the lower compartment 20.

To promote the speed and efficiency of the chemical reaction, the usercan shake the arrangement, typically for about 10-20 seconds, and caneven invert the arrangement and allow it to stand, typically for lessthan two minutes. In the preferred embodiment, about 28 grams of agranulated calcium chloride (grain size 1-2 mm) are used. The liquidreactant need not be pure water, but can be mixed with an acid, such asoxalic acid. In about one minute's time, the temperature of theexothermic reaction caused when water and calcium chloride interactrises from a room temperature of about 19° C. to a temperature of about60° C., which is sufficient to heat the product within the cup.

The radial pressure is exerted between the opposing fingers 66. Asshown, there are four zones, one corresponding to each abutment 56, 58,60, 62, at which the finger pressure should be applied. These zones canbe highlighted and marked on the side wall 12. Otherwise, it issufficient for the user to merely hold the container in his or her handand grip tightly as if making a fist. This radial squeezing is continueduntil resistance is felt when the side wall 12 engages the cup 14. Thiscup thus serves as a safety stop for preventing the user from completelycrushing the arrangement. A label can be applied on the side wall whichnot only provides sales and marketing information, but also prominentlydisplays the finger pressure zones.

Once the recommended waiting period has elapsed, the arrangement isreturned to its original upright position, and the pull tab 42 is pulledback to either partially or completely remove the diaphragm 40 dependingupon the type of product in the cup and how it will be consumed. Forexample, a spoon requires more room to access soup within the cup ascompared to a beverage which is directly sipped. If the product is abeverage, such as coffee, then the sip lid 30 is snapped over the openedseal, and the beverage is consumed through an aperture 70 (see FIG. 9).

It will be understood that each of the elements described above, or twoor more together, also may find a useful application in other types ofconstructions differing from the types described above.

While the invention has been illustrated and described as embodied in aarrangement for and method of selectably changing the temperature of aproduct, it is not intended to be limited to the details shown, sincevarious modifications and structural changes may be made withoutdeparting in any way from the spirit of the present invention.

Without further analysis, the foregoing will so fully reveal the gist ofthe present invention that others can, by applying current knowledge,readily adapt it for various applications without omitting featuresthat, from the standpoint of prior art, fairly constitute essentialcharacteristics of the generic or specific aspects of this inventionand, therefore, such adaptations should and are intended to becomprehended within the meaning and range of equivalence of thefollowing claims.

1. An arrangement for selectably changing a temperature of a product,comprising: a) an outer container having a side wall bounding aninterior and spaced radially from an axis; b) an inner cup fixedlymounted within the interior of the container and having a chamber forcontaining the product; c) a breakable membrane fixedly mounted within,and subdividing, the interior of the container into a pair ofcompartments; d) a pair of reactants respectively contained in thecompartments and kept apart by the membrane prior to use; and e) abreaking member mounted within the interior of the container forbreaking the membrane upon exertion of radial pressure on the side wallof the container, to allow the reactants to mix and form a chemicalreaction that changes the temperature of the product in the cup.
 2. Thearrangement of claim 1, wherein the container is constituted of athermally insulating material, and wherein the cup is constituted of athermally conductive material.
 3. The arrangement of claim 1, whereinthe container and the cup having abutting flanges spin-welded together.4. The arrangement of claim 1, wherein the container has an internalshoulder on which the membrane is adhered.
 5. The arrangement of claim1, wherein the side wall is annular, wherein the container has aninternal annular shoulder, and wherein the membrane is a foil having anannular periphery adhered to the shoulder.
 6. The arrangement of claim1, wherein the container has an internal shoulder on which the membraneis mounted, and wherein the breaking member is mounted on the membrane.7. The arrangement of claim 6, wherein the breaking member has aplurality of radial arms having inner ends hingedly connected together,and a plurality of abutments at outer ends of the arms, each abutmentbeing in contact with the side wall within the interior of the containerand being movable toward the axis upon radially constricting the sidewall.
 8. The arrangement of claim 1, wherein the reactants are water andanhydrous calcium oxide or calcium chloride.
 9. The arrangement of claim1, wherein the cup has a flange; and a seal for sealing the cup, theseal including an annular rim mechanically crimped over the flange ofthe cup, and a peelable diaphragm detachably mounted on the rim, thediaphragm having a pull tab for enabling the diaphragm to be at leastpartly peeled from the rim.
 10. The arrangement of claim 1, and anapertured lid mounted with snap action over the container and the cup.11. A method of selectably changing a temperature of a product,comprising the steps of: a) at least partly filling a cup with theproduct; b) sealing the product within the cup; c) fixedly mounting thesealed, product-filled cup inside a container having a side wallsurrounding, and spaced from, an axis; d) subdividing an interior of thecontainer into a pair of compartments by mounting a breakable membranewithin the container; e) at least partly filling a pair of reactantsrespectively into the compartments; f) mounting a breaking member withinthe interior of the container; and g) exerting a radial pressure on theside wall of the container and causing the breaking membrane to breakthe membrane to allow the reactants to mix and form a chemical reactionthat changes the temperature of the product in the cup.
 12. The methodof claim 11, wherein the sealing step is performed by mechanicallycrimping an annular rim of a seal over a flange of the cup.
 13. Themethod of claim 11, wherein the fixedly mounting step is performed byspin-welding the cup inside the container.
 14. The method of claim 11,wherein the subdividing step is performed by adhering a periphery of themembrane to an internal shoulder of the container.
 15. The method ofclaim 11, wherein the exerting step is performed by radiallyconstricting the side wall of the container in a user's hand.
 16. Amethod of consuming a product whose temperature has been changed,comprising the steps of: a) at least partly filling a cup with theproduct; b) sealing the product within the cup; c) fixedly mounting thesealed, product-filled cup inside a container having a side wallsurrounding, and spaced from, an axis; d) subdividing an interior of thecontainer into a pair of compartments by mounting a breakable membranewithin the container; e) at least partly filling a pair of reactantsrespectively into the compartments; f) mounting a breaking member withinthe interior of the container; g) exerting a radial pressure on the sidewall of the container and causing the breaking membrane to break themembrane to allow the reactants to mix and form a chemical reaction thatchanges the temperature of the product in the cup; h) unsealing the cup;and i) consuming the product within the unsealed cup.
 17. The method ofclaim 16, wherein the unsealing step is performed by at least partlypeeling a diaphragm off a seal sealed to the cup.
 18. The method ofclaim 17, and the step of mounting an apertured lid on the unsealed cup,and wherein the consuming step is performed by consuming the productthrough the apertured lid.
 19. A breaking member, comprising: a) apointed barb movable along an axis; b) a plurality of abutments spacedapart circumferentially of the axis; and c) a plurality of armsextending radially outwardly in different directions from the barb, thearms having inner ends hingedly connected to the barb, and outer endshingedly connected to the abutments.
 20. The breaking member of claim19, wherein the abutments are curved and lie along an annulussurrounding the axis.